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MWR: How to Screw Up a Time-Lapse

June 08, 18

How to Screw Up a Time-Lapse

3 common mistakes people make when time-lapsing

In this week's episode of Move with Rhino, we wanted to show 3 common mistakes that people make when going out to shoot an epic night time-lapse. Time lapses are amazing, especially when they are shot for several hours over night with clear skies. But nothing is worse than waking up in the morning to an unsuccessful time-lapse shot. How can you be prepared to make sure you nail the shot every time? Check out the video below to see what our 3 most important tips are for time-lapsing.

Behind The Scenes

Thanks for watching the latest episode to our series “Move with Rhino”. We want to help other filmmakers gain inspiration or give them tips on different types of shots. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for weekly uploads and updates. Now let’s go film.

Stability is a major key when time-lapsing. By stability we mean a reliable tripod. You definitely do not want to set your time-lapse on a flimsy or weak tripod for hours during the night. Be sure to use a stable tripod and spread out the legs as wide as you can. This will reduce the chance of your camera being tipped over by wind.

This may be a no brainer for some but you would be surprised at how many people forget to pull focus, even us. Although you can increase sharpness and clarity in post, you will not be able to bring the stars back into focus. So be sure to zoom in on your cameras live view to double check that they are in focus or if your camera is equipped with focus peaking, that is a great tool as well.

Dew Heaters

This one is a game changer! Dew heaters prevent your lens from being affected by condensation. Many people time-lapse in epic landscapes and those areas can be humid or cold. We cannot tell you how many times in the past our time-lapses were ruined by a couple dew drops on the lens. Dew Heaters make sure that the lens is right above the dew point so that you can be sure your time-lapse will be clear as day.

Time-lapsing is what we enjoy doing here at Rhino. We just love how simple it is to setup a shot and trust that our gear will get the job done. Setting up a time-lapse has never been easier with Rhino Motion.